Garrison Starr
The Sound of You and Me

(Vanguard)

First Appeared in The Music Box, March 2006, Volume 13, #3

Written by John Metzger

After awkwardly stumbling through Airstreams & Satellites, her debut for Vanguard, Garrison Starr finds a more comfortable footing for herself on her latest endeavor The Sound of You and Me. Drifting throughout the affair are hints of her past flirtations with alt-country — a product, no doubt, of her recent move to Nashville — but for the most part, she continues to push her music in a decidedly pop-oriented direction. Beatle-esque strings kiss the explosive conclusion to Big Enough, for example, while the bubbly lightness that surrounds her lyrics on the standout track Sing It Like a Victim eventually gives her the strength to leave behind her broken heart. Unfortunately, Starr still has a tendency to misstep with her arrangements: Pendulum’s swollen, central section disrupts the tune’s otherwise organic perfection; and Beautiful in Los Angeles and Kansas City, KS are bland retreads of Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crow, respectively. Nevertheless, by largely embracing a subtler ambience, Starr makes the emotions that inhabit her songs of love and loss resonate more fully, which not only allows her to connect better with her audience, but also primes her for the breakthrough that thus far has escaped her grasp.

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Ratings

1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!

Copyright © 2006 The Music Box